The ALL NEW Big Wakeup Call with Ryan Gatenby

Send us Fan Mail From September 17, 2015: Margaret Cho visited the program to talk about her new Showtime Special, MARGARET CHO: psyCHO  and upcoming tour dates, including one in Chicago The Chicago Theater.

Send us Fan Mail From March 29, 2020: Comedian and Actress Jane Lynch called in to talk about her career in comedy, including her role as Alice in The Real Live Brady Bunch  at the Annoyance Theater in Chicago, and her new gig hosting a revival of The Weakest Link.

Send us Fan Mail From November 9, 2017: The legendary Emmylou Harris visited the show to promote getTV's first ever holiday special on the digital network,  A Nashville Christmas , featuring Emmylou Harris alongside Wyonna Judd, Pam Tillis, Lorrie Morgan and Vincent & Dailey.

Send us Fan Mail From November 17, 2021: Brian Baumgartner, "Kevin Malone" from The Office, called into talk about his book  WELCOME TO DUNDER MIFFLIN: The Ultimate Oral History of The Office .

Send us Fan Mail From February 6, 2016: "The Office" legend Kate Flannery shared some stories from her time on "The Office," her days doing improv in Chicago, and her new film,  4th Man Out. KATE FLANNERY BIOGRAPHY  KATE FLANNERY is best known for her 9 seasons as Meredith the drunk on NBC’s THE OFFICE. Her original cult comedy lounge act, the Lampshades plays all over the coun...

Send us Fan Mail From November 12, 2018: John Flansburgh from They Might Be Giants called in for a chat about the They Might Be Giants Radio Network, of which I was a charter member. We also talked about my cassette (yes, mine, specifically) of  Flood   and being mistaken for another bespectacled duo.

Send us Fan Mail Pam Nisevich Bede  is an author and sports nutritionist. Pam shared some heatwave hydration solutions and other safety tips to be aware of in record-breaking heat.

Send us Fan Mail From April 1, 2016: "Ringo Starr" called in to talk about his book,  Postcards From the Boys," and his upcoming tour with the All-Starr Band. *DISCLAIMER: not Ringo Starr. An incredible simulation. Part of an April Fool's Day show where I talked to guests even more awesome than our usual stellar lineup.

Send us Fan Mail From November 2013: I had a fun chat with Lisa Loeb about her new album for kids and our shared love of the 70s PBS Kids show "Zoom."

Send us Fan Mail From October 16, 2012: Susanna Hoffs joined the show to talk about her album  Someday.  We also had a fun guitar geek chat about Rickenbacker guitars.

Send us Fan Mail Chicago's own Amy Landecker called in on September 22, 2017 to talk about an all-new season (season 4) of her critically-acclaimed and Emmy-Award winning Amazon Prime series Transparent. ABOUT AMY LANDECKER Landecker is best known for playing the first-born child in Transparent , Amazon Video’s groundbreaking series about a transgender woman and her chaotic yet lovable family...

Send us Fan Mail TV legend  Bob Eubanks joined the show on June 8, 2021, to talk about the 55th anniversary of  The Newlywed Game .  We also had a fun chat about how he promoted the Beatles 1964 concert at the Hollywood Bowl, where he got paid more than they did! In fact, Bob promoted Beatles concerts on all three of their U.S. tours!

Send us Fan Mail From July 2015, legendary comedian and Chicago-area local hero Jim Gaffigan called in for a brief but entertaining chat with me about the debut episode of The Jim Gaffigan Show.

Send us Fan Mail From December 11, 2014: Legendary TV host and comedy writer  Dick Cavett called in to talk about his memoir, BRIEF ENCOUNTERS: Conversations, Magic Moments, and Assorted Hijinks.   We discussed Groucho Marx, Jack Benny, John and Yoko, and many more.  At the end of the interview, Dick complimented me on my interviewing style, which is certainly a highlight of my career, ABOUT DICK...

Send us Fan Mail From June 22, 2018, legendary author James Patterson called in to talk about his new novel, The President Is Missing, a collaboration with former president Bill Clinton. Immediately following our show, the book became the #1 best-seller in the nation. While we take no credit, we still think we helped to move a lot of copies. ABOUT JAMES PATTERSON James Patterson received the Liter...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, we re-visit my chats with best-selling superstar author Rick Riordan!  Rick Riordan , dubbed “storyteller of the gods” by Publishers Weekly , is the author of five #1 New York Times best-selling middle grade series with millions of copies sold throughout the world: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Heroes of Olympus, and the Trials of Apollo, based on Greek and...

Send us Fan Mail NBC Dateline correspondent Keith Morrison visited our show twice to talk about the latest episodes of the long-running program. Our interviews were on October 18, 2013 and April 4, 2014. KEITH MORRISON - Correspondent, Dateline   Keith Morrison is an award-winning correspondent for Dateline . He joined the program in 1995 after a varied career at both NBC and in Canadian televisio...

Send us Fan Mail From October 30, 2019: NBC News correspondent and MSNBC anchor Stephanie Ruhle called in for a chat about her book Modern Ruhles, where she "brings her characteristic curiosity, empathy and insight to some of today's thorniest, most complex conversations." ABOUT STEPHANIE RUHLE  Stephanie Ruhle anchors "MSNBC Live with Stephanie Ruhle" at 9 a.m. ET and &qu...

Send us Fan Mail From April 10, 2019: Nora McInerny talked about her new memoir, No Happy Endings,  which she described as "a new book with more heartbreaking AND hilarious meditations on my messy, wonderful, and unexpected life." ABOUT NORA MCINERNY NORA MCINERNY IS a reluctant expert in difficult conversations. As the host of American Public Media’s Gracie Award-winning podcast Terribl...

Send us Fan Mail From September 27, 2018: Andrea Canning, correspondent for Dateline NBC, called in to promote the 27th season of the program. ABOUT ANDREA CANNING Andrea Canning is a correspondent for Dateline NBC and contributes to all NBC News platforms. Canning reports on major crime stories, high profile trials and breaking news including the Boston Marathon Bombing, Hurricane Sandy, the shoo...

Send us Fan Mail From October 9, 2018: Best-selling author Alan Axelrod discussed his book  THE DISRUPTERS: 50 People Who Changed the World. ABOUT ALAN AXELROD   ALAN AXELROD is the author of more than 100 books, including the CEO and Real History series. He was the coauthor of The New York Times bestseller What Every American Should Know About American History as well as the Businessweek bestsell...

Send us Fan Mail From October 29, 2021: Tamron Hall, Emmy®  Award-winning talk show host and television journalist, discussed the launch of a new series of crime thrillers, featuring a main character modeled on herself, with AS THE WICKED WATCH: The First Jordan Manning Novel  as the first in the series. ABOUT TAMRON HALL From the deeply moving to the purely fun, "Tamron Hall" is a daily...

Send us Fan Mail From June 1, 2021: Chicago-raised Veronica Roth was a senior at Northwestern University when she wrote her first book Divergent , the first part of a trilogy that would go on to sell more than 42 million copies and spawn three hit films starring Kate Winslet and Shailene Woodley (Veronica sold the film rights within months of graduating college.). The book series – about a futuris...

Send us Fan Mail From September 13, 2017: NBC News correspondent Katy Tur talked about her book UNBELIEVABLE: My Front-Row Seat to the Craziest Campaign in American History. ABOUT KATY TUR AND UNBELIEVABLE: My Front-Row Seat to the Craziest Campaign in American History Called "Disgraceful," "third-rate," and "not nice" by Donald Trump, NBC News Correspondent Katy Tur...

Send us Fan Mail From April 16, 2019: Jessica Yellin discusses her first novel,  Savage News. ABOUT JESSICA YELLIN   Jessica Yellen is the former chief White House correspondent for CNN and an Emmy and Gracie Award- winning political journalist for CNN, ABC News, and MSNBC. She is also the founder of Sage, a multi-platform media company. Yellin’s work has been published in the New York Times, Los...